Press ladder construction



June 4, 1957 w. ERNST PRESS LADDER cons'mucnou 2 Shets-Sheet 1 FiledAug. 2. 1952 lNVENTOR WALTER ERNST ,gm ATTORNEYS W. ERNST PRESS LADDERCONSTRUCTION June 4, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 2, 1952 INVENTORWALTER ERNST BY FA; 47

ATTORNEYS United States Patent PRESS LADDER-CONSTRUCTION Walter Ernst,Dayton, Ohio, .assignbr to The Commonwealth Engineering Company of Ohio,Dayton, Ohio Application August-2, 1952, SriallNo. 302,319 1 Claim. (Cl.223 -48).

This invention relates to press constructions, particularly to a novelladder construction for gaining access to the top of the press :and is acontinuation-in-part of my co-pending application; Serial No; 115,901,filed September 15', 1949, and-now Patent*No. 2,672,8 3 6E In largepresses,--pa-r-ticularlyhydraulic presses-,it is customary to mountthe-hydraulic power unit and the fluid reservoir and tank-togetherwith-at least some of the operating walves entop of the-press head;These elements require-frequent inspection and servicing; and forthispurpose it is-customarytoprovide a ladder-attached-to the pressframe so a workman can oliinb up to the top of the press;

Inasmuch as there is inevitably someaccumul'ation of .oil on: thepressfra'n'ie and' on the ladder it is rather. difii- .cult toascend-anddescend the usual type ofliladden because it is generally avertical arrangement h'avinground rungs therein.

The ladder is'us'uallly arranged perfectly vertically and closelyadjacent to the press 'in' order to conserve floor space, and thisincreases-the possibility-of the ladder becomingcoated'withamoily film.

Having the foregoing in mind, it is a p ary-.o bject of this inventionto provide a ladder arrangement ifflit'a press, particularly a hydraulicpress, in which the difiiculty of ascending and descending the ladderbecause of its slippery and oily condition is largely eliminated.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a ladderarrangement for a press, particularly a hydraulic press, which issecured to the press in an out-of-the-way position when not in use, butwhich can be moved to a more accessible position when it is desired touse the ladder.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a ladder for apress having an out-of-the-way idle position and a more accessible useposition in which the ladder is prevented from shifting accidentallyfrom either position.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will becomemore apparent upon reference to the following specification taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational View of one side of a hydraulic pressconstruction having a ladder, according to this invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the ladder arrangement of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view like Figure 2 but showing a modified arrangement ofthe ladder;

Figure 4 is a view like Figure 3 showing still another modification;

Figure 5 is still another view like Figure 3, but shows a still furthermodification of this invention;

Figure 6 is a side view of the Figure 5 arrangement, indicated 'by line6-6 on Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a view looking in at the Figure 5 construction, as indicatedby line 77 on Figure 6;

Z,794,5 83 Patented Ju 4, 1957 ice Figure 8' is .a view showing a stillfurther modified arrangement with the ladder in use Position;

Figure 9 is a view of the Figure 8 construction, showingthe ladder inrest or idle position; and

Figure 10. is a sectional view ofline 1010 on,,Fig-. ure 8.

Referring to the drawings somewhat more in detail, the. pressillustrated in Figure 1 comprises va bed 10 and a head 12 between whichextends uprights 14 with. the assemblybeingssecured together by strainrods which-we not shown. Press platen 16 is reciprocal between lhe headand. bed andis powered by a ram 18 extendingfinto a cylinder 20in thepress head.

Mounted .on top of the presshead is a fluid tankior reservoir 22 andpumping means adapted-for being driven by a ,motor 24. The; principalvalves tor controlling the energization. of the hydraulic ,motorarealsomounted on the press head.

,A guard rail 26 is provided about thegspace on toppf the press head andreservoir, and access to this spacetcan he had-through the opening 28 inthe -guard rail arrangement, and in which opening thereqmay be. providedthe steps '30:

Piyotedas at 32 to the press headrisga ladder sawmrri ing: siderails-and rod rungs-ext nd ng therebe een- On the bed 10 of the pressthere are provided-the lugs or blocks 36, to which are pivoted the arms:38. x8 areaper ure at the ou erends' and whichaper- .turesare-- adaptedfor registering. with the apertures 40 at the lowe most ends of thesaiderrails. of laddervfi, or with the apertures :42 spaced upwardly,onathe .sideqrails of the ladder.

,As-awill he seen-in Figure 2 when the'barsfijs'h-areconnested awiththeladder 13:4 at theiaperturesufl,.thealadder iis-tilted outwardly:from the press so 'thatit is easy to ajscendzand-descend the ladder andwith a greater-degree 43f safety than when the ladder is verticallymountednon :the sidecf {the :press.

However, when the ladder is not in use, bars 38 can be connectedtherewith at the apertures 42.-and at that time the ladder will be heldclose against the side of the press, and thus be in an out-of-the-wayposition. It will, therefore, be seen that this provides for a readymeans of improving the safety and convenience of the press, and,particularly, for the servicing or inspection of the hydraulic elementsmounted on the press head.

In Figure 3 there is illustrated a modified arrangement where the bars39 which correspond with the bars 38 in Figures 1 and 2, are providedwith small clips 44 that engage the adjacent side rails of the ladder 41when the ladder is positioned against the side of the press. -Provisionof the clips 44 insures that the ladder will be firmly clamped againstthe side of the press when not in use.

In Figure 4 the ladder, which is pivoted to the head of the press 'as inFigure 1, is identified at 46 and pivoted to the bottoms of the siderails of the ladder are the bars 48. The ends. of the bars 48 at bed 50of the press are traversed by a rod 52 having its ends slidingly guidedin the slots 54 of the members 56 mounted on the press bed.

In use, the Figure 4 arrangement can be collapsed against the side ofthe press by raising rod 52 in slots 54, and the pulling outwardly ofthe bottom of the ladder when it is to be used will permit rod 52 todrop to the bottom of slots 54, and in which position the ladder willremain until it is deliberately collapsed.

In Figure 5 the pivoted ladder is indicated at 58 and is provided withthe slots 60 in the lower ends of its side rails. A pair of bars 62 arepivoted to the press bed 64 and have their outer ends connected by a rod66 that slidably engages the slots 60 in the side rails of the ladder.

As will be seen in Figure 6, the lowermost ends of slots 60 include therecesses '68, for receiving the ends of bar 66 or rollers which maybemounted thereon. When the Figure arrangement is to be placed in useposition, the lower end of the ladder is pulled out and the rod 66 willdrop to the bottoms of slots 60, where upon releasing of the ladder willpermit the recesses 68 to engage the said rod or the rollers thereon,and thus to lock the ladder in place.

Whenthe ladder is to be collapsed it is pulled outward slightly and therod 66 raised upwardly in the slots 60, whereupon the ladder willcollapse against the side of the press. f

In Figure 8 the pivoted ladder bears numeral 70 and pivoted on brackets72 mounted on the side of-the press bed are the bars or arms 74. Therollers 76 on the side rails of the ladder are received in the slotmeans 78 in the arms or bars 74. The latch 80on eacharm is adapted tolock the rollers 76 at either end of'its slot so that the ladder can belocked at its Figure 8 or use position, and also locked in its Figure 9or-collapsed position.

In any case, with any of the modifications referred to above,theadvantage obtains that the laddercan readily be shifted from a tilteduse position where it is convenient to use or collapsed back flatagainst the side of the press where it occupies the least possibleamount of space.

It will be understood that this invention is susceptible to modificationin order to adapt it to difierent usages and conditions, and,accordingly, it is desired to comprehend such modifications within thisinvention as may fall within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A ladder for an oil operative hydraulic equipment having improved safetyin operation, said ladder comprising parallel side rails extending thelength of the ladder, rungs spaced longitudinally of said rails anddisposed transversely and joining said side rails, frame means forsupporting said ladder, a bracket arranged on said frame adjacent theupper end of said ladder, pivot means for securing the upper ends ofsaid ladder rails whereby said ladder may be swung to and from saidframe, each of said side rails being provided with elongated slots nearthe lower end thereof, a pair of brackets mounted on said frame adjacentthe lower end of said ladder rails, slot means disposed adjacent each ofsaid lower brackets and arranged to receive the rails of said ladderwhen the ladder is swung against the frame, a pair of parallel barsdisposed at the lower end of said ladder rails, said bars beingpivotally connected at their inner ends to said pair of brackets and attheir outer ends to a rod, said rod being slidably engaged at its outerends in said elongated slots, said pivot means at the top and the pivotat the bottom of said ladder and said rod lying in the same plane whichplane is parallel to and spaced from said frame means when the ladded ispivoted against said frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS226,935 Smart Apr. 27, 1880 468,722 Gillingham ,Feb. 9, 1892 662,545Ovenden Nov. 27, 1900 790,483 ,Demartini May 23, 1905 944,849 DuncanDec. 28, 1909 2,068,028 Jernson Jan. 19, 1937 2,576,584 Ernst Nov. 27,1951 2,622,783 Mahoney Dec. 23, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 14,056 GreatBritain June 25, 1898 19,509 Great Britain Dec. 5, 1889 311,500 GreatBritain May 16, 1929 526,672 Great Britain Sept. 24, 1940 11,982 DenmarkMar. 16, 1909 561,594 Germany Oct. 15, 1932 OTHER REFERENCES Catalogueof Warren City Mfg. Co., Griswold Street,

Warren, Ohio. Page 3, Fig. WC46. Recd in Div. 14, November 22, 1946.

